In Iowa he and American Crossroads President, Steven Law, have already set their sites on Congressman Steve King (R-IA) who leads twopolls among prospective GOP contenders for the U.S. Senate seat now open due to Senator Tom Harkin’s (D-IA) upcoming retirement. Law said that they are concerned about “Steve King’s Todd Akin problem. “This is an example of candidate discipline and how it would play in a general election. All of the things he’s said are going to be hung around his neck.”

King countered, “This is a decision for Iowans to make and should not be guided by some political staffers in Washington.” Absolutely. He was targeted in his last race and he still won by a wide margin with very little establishment help. I’m in favor of contested primaries, but I don’t want Beltway establishment types to decide for me who should represent me in the Senate. Congressman King has been a champion for a whole plethora of conservative causes and has as much right as anyone else to run for that Senate seat.

What’s laughable is that Karl Rove believes he can lead Republicans to victory when he was involved in setting up the stunning 2006 and 2008 Republican defeats. Ron Meyer of American Majority Action made good points about Karl Rove’s current political misadventures:

“Karl Rove, fresh off of a massive and embarrassing 2012 failure–both in the prediction and advocacy worlds–is trying to convince his donors that 2012 wasn’t his fault. It was conservatives’.” Meyer said that Rove’s “political adventures under President Bush (NCLB, Medicaid Part D, and increased spending) led the Republican Party into stunning and historic losses in 2006 and 2008.”

“Conservatives–led by the Tea Party excitement–took back the House of Representatives with no help from Karl Rove. In 2012, Rove and his Super PAC American Crossroads spent just 1.29% of their money against candidates who lost, according to the Sunlight Foundation,” Meyer added.

Ben Shapiro pointed out that a better strategy would be providing assistance and training to Tea Party and other conservative candidates, but they’re looking for better candidates. They want to transform the party:

And so the Karl Rove establishment leaked to the far-left New York Times that the “biggest donors in the Republican Party” were working with the leaders of Rove’s American Crossroads super PAC to “recruit seasoned candidates and protect Senate incumbents from challenges by far-right conservatives and Tea Party enthusiasts who Republican leaders worry could complicate the party’s effort to win control of the Senate.”

Why didn’t Rove and company tell the Times that they were interested in training conservative candidates in media fluency? Why didn’t they approach the Tea Party instead, and offer their get-out-the-vote services and electoral strategies?

Because, at root, there is a clash at the heart of today’s Republican Party. The Tea Party wants to change tactics. The establishment wants to discard principle.

Shapiro says the question that needs to be answered is whether the Republican Party will be the party of Ronald Reagan or George W. Bush.

Which one will the GOP be? The former could lead to a resurgence for the party. The latter will lead us into failure and turning the Republican Party forevermore into Democrat Lite with Karl Rove and company at the helm.

Jim Hoft at Gateway Pundit also made the point that Karl Rove’s communication credentials should be questioned. Had he been better at communications the Bush Administration wouldn’t have sat silent while they were pummeled by the liberal media. Hoft also points out that rolling out his new PAC to the New York Times was a strategic mistake, and we’re supposed to trust his political acumen?

He has a funny way of showing it. He wants articulate candidates? So do I. I wasn’t happy after Congressman Akin’s gaffe. I agreed with the principle he was trying to communicate, not with how he communicated it. I didn’t think it was something he couldn’t recover from however. Karl Rove and company shoved him off the cliff. I’m not sure why they bought into the fantasy that he could have been replaced that late in the game and still win anyway. It would have been better for Rove and company to get ahold of Akin’s campaign to coach them on how to handle the media going forward.

So I’m not convinced he doesn’t want a fight. I think he just doesn’t want to take the heat. It’s about time for Rove to get out of the kitchen anyway. Since Karl Rove has been more of a liability than an asset to the conservative cause it’s time for him to exit stage left… Mr. Rove your services are no longer required. You may have been useful at one time, but no longer.

Shane Vander Hart is the founder and editor-in-chief of Caffeinated Thoughts. He is also the President of 4:15 Communications, LLC, a social media & communications consulting/management firm. Prior to this Shane spent 20 years in youth ministry serving in church, parachurch, and school settings. He has also served as an interim pastor and is a sought after speaker and pulpit fill-in. Shane has been married to his wife Cheryl since 1993 and they have three kids. Shane and his family reside near Des Moines, IA.

About Shane Vander Hart

Shane Vander Hart is the founder and editor-in-chief of Caffeinated Thoughts. He is also the President of 4:15 Communications, LLC, a social media & communications consulting/management firm. Prior to this Shane spent 20 years in youth ministry serving in church, parachurch, and school settings. He has also served as an interim pastor and is a sought after speaker and pulpit fill-in. Shane has been married to his wife Cheryl since 1993 and they have three kids. Shane and his family reside near Des Moines, IA.

Comments

Karl is a big government republican. I hate everything he represents. We tea party republicans, or true conservatives, or PRO-LIFE republicans are fighting a war on two fronts. We are fighting the democrooks and big government republicans. A war on two fronts is hard to win, but somehow, God willing, we need to regroup and keep fighting!